Agricultural rolling basket bearing assembly

ABSTRACT

An agricultural tillage implement includes a frame member and at least one rolling basket assembly coupled to the frame member. The rolling basket assembly has at least one bearing hanger, at least one rolling basket and at least one bearing assembly rotationally coupling the rolling basket to the bearing hanger. The bearing assembly has a bearing with an inner ring and a spindle holding the inner ring. The spindle is coupled to the bearing hanger. The spindle being configured to accommodate dynamic misalignment of the bearing.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a divisional non-provisional utility patent application based upon US non-provisional utility patent application Ser. No. 14,535,616, entitled “AGRICULTURAL ROLLING BASKET BEARING ASSEMBLY”, filed Nov. 7, 20143, which is based upon U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/903,444, entitled “AGRICULTURAL ROLLING BASKET BEARING ASSEMBLY”, filed Nov. 13, 2013, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to agricultural implements, and, more particularly, to a bearing assembly used with a rolling basket of an agricultural tillage implement.

2. Description of the Related Art

Farmers utilize a wide variety of tillage implements to prepare soil for planting. Some such implements include two or more sections coupled together to perform multiple functions as they are pulled through fields by a tractor. For example, a field cultivator is capable of simultaneously tilling soil and leveling the tilled soil in preparation for planting. A field cultivator has a frame that carries a number of cultivator shanks with shovels at their lower ends for tilling the soil. The field cultivator converts compacted soil into a level seedbed with a consistent depth for providing excellent conditions for planting of a crop. Grass or residual crop material disposed on top of the soil is also worked into the seedbed so that it does not interfere with a seeding implement subsequently passing through the seedbed.

A field cultivator as described above may also include an optional rear auxiliary implement for finishing the seedbed for seeding. For example, a rear auxiliary implement may include a spike tooth harrow, spring tooth harrow, rolling basket, etc., or any combination thereof. The rolling basket has a reel with a plurality of blades for breaking clods into smaller sizes and chopping up the debris still remaining on the top of the soil.

The rolling basket arrangement can be used to roll behind the rows of tines of a harrow, to flatten the ridges left by the tines and move the residual crop material into the soil to enhance contact with the soil. The rolling basket is used to provide a firm, level field with coarse soil on top that resists crusting, with the finer soil particles at planting depth for optimum seed-to-soil contact.

The rolling baskets generally have bearings located at each end of the basket. As the baskets traverse a field the bars that impact clods of dirt and variations in the soil cause the bars to flex which translates to a flexure of the end plates, which are connected to the bearings. This kind of motion causes stress on the bearings resulting in bearing oscillation and premature bearing failure.

What is needed in the art is a bearing assembly that can withstand oscillating angular forces encountered by the bearings of rolling baskets of an agricultural tillage implement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a tillage implement with rolling basket assemblies, which are configured to preserve bearing life by accommodating dynamic misalignment of the bearings.

The invention in one form is directed to an agricultural tillage implement including a frame member and at least one rolling basket assembly coupled to the frame member. The rolling basket assembly has at least one bearing hanger, at least one rolling basket and at least one bearing assembly rotationally coupling the rolling basket to the bearing hanger. The bearing assembly has a bearing with an inner ring and a spindle holding the inner ring. The spindle is coupled to the bearing hanger. The spindle being configured to accommodate dynamic misalignment of the bearing.

The invention in another form is directed to a bearing assembly having a bearing with an inner ring and a spindle holding the inner ring. The spindle is coupled to a bearing hanger. The spindle is configured to accommodate dynamic misalignment of the bearing.

The invention in yet another form is directed to a method of accommodating a dynamic misalignment of a bearing that couples a rolling basket to a bearing hanger of an agricultural implement, comprising the steps of carrying the bearing on a resilient spindle that is coupled to the bearing hanger; and providing a gap along a side of the bearing.

An advantage of the present invention is that it extends the life of the bearings.

Another advantage of the present invention is that it is applicable to a large number of tillage equipment platforms.

Yet another advantage is that the present invention is easily applied to legacy equipment, thereby reducing retrofit costs.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above-mentioned and other features and advantages of this invention, and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and the invention will be better understood by reference to the following description of embodiments of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an agricultural tillage implement using an embodiment of a bearing assembly of the present invention to couple rolling baskets to the implement; and

FIG. 2 is a partially sectioned view of the bearing assembly used in the rolling basket assemblies of FIG. 1.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate some embodiments of the invention and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown an embodiment of a tillage implement 10 of the present invention. Tillage implement 10 includes a rolling basket assembly 12 connected to a frame member 14 of implement 10. Frame 14 is part of tillage implement 10 that is towed by a traction unit, such as by an agricultural tractor (not shown).

Rolling basket assembly 12 may be one of several rolling basket assemblies connected to frame 14, which collectively may be thought of as an auxiliary implement for finishing the soil. The auxiliary implement may include a spring tooth drag (not shown) and rolling basket assemblies 12 which act to finish the soil.

Rolling basket assembly 12 has positioning arms 16, a sub frame 18, bearing hangers 20, bearing assemblies 22 and baskets 24. Baskets 24 have bars 26 which extend to end plates 28 at each end of bars 26. Bars 26 may have various shapes and be arranged in a straight or spiral fashion. As bars 26 encounter clods of dirt or other irregularities on the ground, bars 26 act to break up the clods and irregularities. Some flexure of bars 26 occurs as they carry out their function and this movement is transferred to some extent to end plates 28. As end plates 28 are flexed this is also transferred to bearing assembly 22. Bearing assembly 22 is configured to accommodate this force and what can be referred to as dynamic misalignment of bearing assembly 22.

Bearing assembly 22 includes a bearing flange 30, a bearing 32, a fastener 34, a washer 36, and a spindle 38. Fastener 34, which may be a bolt and nut, are used to secure spindle 38 to bearing hanger 20. Bearing flange 30 is fastened to end plate 28 thereby providing for the rotational coupling of basket 24 to bearing hanger 20. Spindle 38, in the embodiment shown, has a shoulder 40 and a body 42, made of a resilient material, such as a rubberized plastic material, or a molded urethane. Body 42 of spindle 38 has a length 44 and bearing 32 has a width 46, with length 44 being longer than width 46 to thereby allow axial movement of bearing 32 on body 42. Bearing 32 has an inner ring 48 that sets on the surface of body 42 and an outer ring 50 that is connected to, or is integral with bearing flange 30. Bearing 32 is positioned on body 42 with the resilient nature of spindle 38 allowing bearing 32 to slightly tilt when needed by forces that would tend to misalign bearing 32. The existence of a gap 52, as depicted in FIG. 2, is for the purpose of illustration and as the invention is accommodating the dynamic misalignment of bearing 32, gap 52 may shift to the other side of bearing 32 or may exist to some degree on both sides of bearing 32. When bearing 32 tilts due to forces transferred to it by end plate 28 a portion of bearing 32 may contact a portion of washer 36 and a portion of bearing 32 may contact part of shoulder 40.

Fastener 34 extends through spindle 38 and is used to tightly secure spindle 38 to bearing hanger 20. Shoulder 40 may be circular, square or some other shape in cross section, and may interact with a surface feature on bearing hanger 20 to further secure spindle 38 thereto. Washer 36 is oversized and extends beyond the outer circumference of body 42, thereby capturing bearing 32 on body 42.

The present invention improves the dynamic misalignment capability of a bearing assembly by providing an axle for the bearing to run on that is more flexible or resilient that the prior art steel-on-steel designs. Spindle 38 is made of a plastic type of material with high elasticity and is bolted to bearing hanger 20, also known as a basket supporting upright. Misalignment of bearing 32 can occur when the axis of rotation of the bearing inner portion is not aligned with the axis of rotation of the bearing outer portion. Dynamic misalignment occurs when the angles of the two axes are constantly changing. This situation occurs frequently in bearings mounted with this type of agricultural implement. Excessive dynamic misalignment causes premature wear and failure of the bearing. The combination of the bolted joint design and highly elastic material of the present invention allows the magnitude of the angle between the axes of rotation to increase without greatly increasing the bearing loads that the steel axle of the prior art causes.

An advantage of the present invention is that it extends the life of the bearing. Another advantage is that the present invention is applicable to a large number of tillage equipment platforms. Yet another advantage is that the present invention is easily applied to legacy equipment, thereby reducing retrofit costs.

While this invention has been described with respect to at least one embodiment, the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims. 

1. A method of accommodating a misalignment of a bearing of a bearing assembly, comprising the steps of: providing a bearing assembly that couples a rolling basket to a bearing hanger carried by an agricultural implement, the bearing assembly including a bearing with an inner ring and a resilient spindle, the resilient spindle being coupled to the bearing hanger; carrying the bearing on the resilient spindle via the inner ring of the bearing; providing a gap along one side of the bearing; shifting the gap from the one side of the bearing to an opposite side of the bearing, the gap shifting from movement of the bearing, on the resilient spindle; and accommodating dynamic misalignment of the bearing through the resilient spindle and shifting the gap.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the resilient spindle includes a shoulder positioned between the bearing and the bearing hanger.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the resilient spindle is made of a urethane material.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the resilient spindle is made of a rubberized plastic.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of providing the gap on one side of the bearing further includes simultaneously providing another gap on the opposite side of the bearing. 